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Photos: Take a Tour of Downtown Paducah

The River City News attended the annual Fancy Farm political picnic in western Kentucky over the weekend and made a pit stop in the beautiful river city of Paducah.

The buildings in Downtown Paducah are reminiscent of the architecture in our own Northern Kentucky river cities and that city has undergone several strong efforts to bring people back to its urban center.

While, like many urban cores, there is no shortage of empty storefronts and buildings for sale, Paducah has been successful in attracting and retaining trendy restaurants and shops as well as a strong arts community in its Lowertown Arts District.

Like Covington, Paducah features a series of elaborate murals along its riverfront which, also like Covington, features two rivers: the Ohio and Tennessee. In fact, the same artist constructed the murals in both cities. Unlike Covington, however, Paducah's murals face away from the river and its riverfront, while without a major attraction like The Banks in Cincinnati or Newport on the Levee, is an open, inviting green space that brings in tons of visitors for recreational activities.

Downtown Paducah is also incredibly clean. Where its storefronts are vacant, the city has attempted to instill a sense of nostalgia with a walking tour that tells visitors what used to be there while multiple Downtown construction projects and renovations guide people's imaginations toward an optimistic future. Downtown features a movie theater and a community theater.

Its former market house is now home to a series of restaurants and shops.

Paducah is also home to the National Quilt Museum, its top tourist attraction, as well as a large

Take a photo tour of Downtown Paducah and then do yourself a favor and visit this wonderful Kentucky city.